Section 20-2-210. (For effective date, see note.) Annual performance evaluation

   (a) All personnel employed by local units of administration, including school superintendents, shall have their performance evaluated annually by appropriately trained evaluators. All such performance evaluation records shall be part of the personnel evaluation file and shall be confidential as provided pursuant to subsection (e) of this Code section. In the case of local school superintendents, such evaluations shall be performed by the local board of education. The state board may provide a model annual evaluation instrument for each classification of professional personnel certificated by the Professional Standards Commission. Unless otherwise provided by law, local units of administration are authorized to use the models developed by the State Board of Education.

(b) (1) No later than the 2014-2015 school year, each local school system and all charter schools shall implement an evaluation system as adopted and defined by the State Board of Education for elementary and secondary school teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals. The evaluation system shall be developed by the department in consultation with stakeholders, such as teachers and principals. The evaluation system shall use multiple measures, prioritizing growth in student achievement. For purposes of the evaluation system established pursuant to this subsection, the state board shall define and designate teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals.

   (2) Teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals shall be evaluated using multiple, rigorous, and transparent measures. Beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals shall be given written notice in advance of the school year of the evaluation measures and any specific indicators that will be used to evaluate them. Evaluation measures shall include the following elements:

      (A) For teachers of record who teach courses that are subject to annual state assessments aligned with state standards and the principals and assistant principals of elementary or secondary schools that are subject to such assessments, growth in student achievement on such assessments shall count for at least 50 percent of the evaluation, using the student growth and academic achievement measures identified in the evaluation system;

      (B) For teachers of record who teach courses not subject to annual state assessments, growth in student achievement shall be assessed through measures of student achievement growth developed at the school system level and approved by the Department of Education. When sufficient data becomes available from the department to calculate student achievement growth measures, such measures of student achievement growth shall count for at least 50 percent of the evaluation, using student growth and academic achievement measures developed by the school system in a process approved by the State Board of Education;

      (C) For teachers of record, the annual evaluation shall also include multiple additional measures that shall be correlated with impacts on student achievement results. These measures shall include multiple classroom observations each year by appropriately trained and credentialed evaluators, using clear, consistent observation rubrics, and supplemented by other measures aligned with student achievement, including student perception data and documentation of practice; and

      (D) For assistant principals and principals, the annual evaluation shall also include multiple additional measures that shall be aligned with impacts on student achievement results. These measures shall include multiple school observations each year by appropriately trained and credentialed evaluators. When sufficient data becomes available from the department to calculate performance measures, these measures shall also include the principal's ability to attract and retain highly effective teachers, effectively manage the school, and establish a positive climate for learning, and other measures aligned with student achievement for students in all subgroups.

   (3) The evaluation system adopted by the State Board of Education shall give every teacher of record, assistant principal, and principal one of four rating levels that are designated as "Exemplary," "Proficient," "Needs Development," or "Ineffective," as further defined by the State Board of Education. A rating of "Ineffective" shall constitute evidence of incompetency as provided by paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of Code Section 20-2-940.

   (4) All teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals shall have a pre-evaluation conference, midyear evaluation conference, and a summative evaluation conference, in accordance with state board rules. All teachers of record, assistant principals, and principals shall be notified of and have access to the results of the annual summative performance evaluation and any formative observations conducted throughout the school year pursuant to this subsection within five working days of such evaluation or observations. A teacher of record, assistant principal, or principal, or an evaluator of any such individuals, may request a conference within ten working days of notice of results of a formative observation and such conference shall be provided within ten working days of the request. Conferences shall include the individual being evaluated, his or her supervisor, and the evaluator, unless otherwise agreed upon.

   (5) In order to ensure proper implementation of the evaluation system developed pursuant to this Code section, the Department of Education shall:

      (A) Establish processes and requirements to determine the teacher of record for purposes of assigning student achievement scores to a teacher in evaluating the teacher's performance;

      (B) Establish processes for roster verification and student teacher linkages in order to assign the student's achievement scores to the teacher for the purposes of evaluating the teacher's performance;

      (C) Establish minimum training and credentialing requirements for evaluators of teachers and principals; and

      (D) Provide data systems to support the professional growth of teachers and leaders and facilitate human capital management.

(c) (1) Except as otherwise provided in Code Section 20-2-948, local school systems shall base decisions regarding retention, promotion, compensation, dismissals, and other staffing decisions, including transfers, placements, and preferences in the event of reductions in force, primarily on the results of the evaluations developed as required by this subsection. Such evaluation results shall also be used to provide high-quality, job embedded, and ongoing mentoring, support, and professional development for teachers, assistant principals, and principals, as appropriate, aligned to the teacher's, assistant principal's, or principal's needs as identified in his or her evaluation.

   (2) A teacher or other certificated professional personnel's salary increase or bonus that is based in whole or in part on an evaluation which included student assessment results, standardized test scores, or standardized test answers that were falsified by such teacher or professional or known or caused by such teacher or professional to have been falsified shall be automatically forfeited. A teacher or other certificated professional personnel shall forfeit his or her right or interest in such salary increase or bonus and shall be liable for the repayment of any and all amounts previously paid to him or her based, in whole or in part, on the results of falsified student assessment results, falsified standardized test scores, or falsified standardized test answers.

(d) The superintendent of each local school system shall identify an appropriately trained evaluator for each person employed by the local unit of administration for the purposes of completing an annual evaluation as required by this Code section. The superintendent of each local school system shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with this Code section.

(e) (1) All records, including surveys and evaluation instruments, associated with individual performance evaluations conducted pursuant to this Code section shall be confidential and not subject to public disclosure. Each local school system and charter school shall report performance data to the Georgia Department of Education in a format approved by the State Board of Education. The department is authorized to release performance data, except to the extent it is personally identifiable to any public school employee.

   (2) Any current or former public school employee may execute a release authorizing the release of his or her individual performance data to a third party.

   (3) The department may by agreement share individual data with the Office of Student Achievement for the purposes of improving postsecondary educator preparation so long as the office agrees that it will not disclose personally identifiable information about any public school employee.

(f) The State Board of Education is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this Code section.

Code 1981, § 20-2-210, enacted by Ga. L. 1985, p. 1657, § 1; Ga. L. 1987, p. 1169, § 1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 612, § 9; Ga. L. 1991, p. 1546, § 4; Ga. L. 1995, p. 1072, § 1; Ga. L. 1999, p. 438, § 3; Ga. L. 2000, p. 618, § 32; Ga. L. 2012, p. 111, § 1/HB 692; Ga. L. 2012, p. 358, § 9/HB 706; Ga. L. 2013, p. 1091, § 2/HB 244.